Apr 29, 2012

Libby Day was seven when her mother and two sisters were murdered in "The Satan Sacrifice of Kinnnakee, Kansas." As her family lay dying, little Libby fled their tiny farmhouse into the freezing January snow. She lost some fingers and toes, but she survived-and famously testified that her fifteen-year-old brother, Ben, was the killer. Twenty-five years later, Ben sits in prison, and troubled Libby lives off the dregs of a trust created by well-wishers who've long forgotten her.

The Kill Club is a macabre secret society obsessed with notorious crimes. When they locate Libby and pump her for details-proof they hope may free Ben-Libby hatches a plan to profit off her tragic history. For a fee, she'll reconnect with the players from that night and report her findings to the club...and maybe she'll admit her testimony wasn't so solid after all.

As Libby's search takes from her shabby Missouri strip clubs to abandoned Oklahoma tourist towns, the narrative flashes back to January 2, 1985. The events of that day are relayed through the eyes of Libby's doomed family members-including Ben, a loner whose rage over his shiftless father and their failing farm have driven him into a disturbing friendship with the new girl in town. Piece by piece, the unimaginable truth emerges, and Libby finds herself right back where she started-on the run from a killer

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What a awesome way to spend my weekend...reading this fantastic mystery. Dark Places is everything you want to read in a mystery novel. The book description immediately grabs you and you can't help but want to read it.

Sometimes the synopsis makes a book sound much more interesting than it actually is, in the case of Dark Places I have to say, it is THAT interesting. Dark Places follow Libby Day the only survivor in the Day Satanic Murders other than her fifteen year old brother, who is currently in prison for committing the crimes. Libby's mother, Patty, and her two older sisters, 10 year old Michelle and 9 year old Debbi are all murdered in the early morning of January 3rd, 1985. Libby, now in her 30's is running out of money, the money that was given to her from people all over who wanted to help Libby, the seven yr. old survivor. She is contacted by Len, a member of the Kill Club, The Kill Club are a group of individuals that are obsessed with famous murders. Members of this group all believe that Ben is innocent and that Libby was mistaken when at 7 yrs old she testified that she saw her brother killing her mom with an ax. She decides she will contact key players to the murders for the Kill Club....for a price. This starts as a solution to her money problems but quickly changes to finding out what really happen that night her family was murdered. Dark Places is told in alternate chapters, Then and Now. The Now follows Libby as she makes contact with people about the murders and the things she discovers, the Then is also told in alternate chapters between Ben and his mom, Patty, chronicling their day back in January 2nd 1985. The pacing is spot on. With alternate chapters, I usually find one more interesting than the other, not the case with Dark Places. I was equally engaged in both the Then and Now. The mystery was very much a mystery. As the unraveling was happening, it seemed like it was happening in a pace that allowed you time to think of what you just learned, just as Libby did.

Libby is a character you immediately want and expect to like just because of her horrible circumstances but author Gillian Flynn actually doesn't give her many redeeming qualities. Libby is angry, mean, very cold and a kleptomaniac. She comes off as one that has no heart. She isn't sympathetic to anyone and is very selfish. But she is real. I was surprised that despite her flaws and not liking her much in the beginning, she really grew on me. Obviously I sympathized with her but she is not a character I immediately liked, but I also knew someone who had been through so much was going to have emotional problem and most likely severe ones. Ben is scary, yet super vulnerable. He has this need to be accepted by people. His low self esteem is apparent from the beginning, and many times I felt sad for the kid that started off that horrific day. Patty, the mother, was screaming inside for help. She is overrun with problems from lack of money to the trouble she sees brewing in her son. I felt so bad for her because she clearly felt like she had no where to run to for help. There is a desperation in her that almost makes me cry. There are more characters that somehow though inadvertently had some part in that day. All of these characters were equally intriguing to me.

The eeriness background of the back road farms in Kansas is a perfect setting of Dark Places. I kept picturing a rundown desolate cold farm, the farmhouse tired and unhappy looking. Abandoned warehouses and wooded area, perfect for the Satan worshiping going on in Kinnakee, and it's surrounding towns.

Everything in Dark Places fit together. I recommend Dark Places to anyone who just loves a good solid read. This is my first Gillian Flynn read and it won't be my last.

Apr 26, 2012

Jenna Jenkins was getting married to her long-term boyfriend, Adam, and she was sure her life was all coming together. Until Adam left her for a twenty-three-year-old yoga instructor. To ease the pain, Jenna threw herself into her teenage memories of the late, great Tommy Seer, killed when his car crashed off a bridge in 1987, when she was just twelve, and focusing on the man who has been-and always will be-the true love of her life, however worrying that may seem to her best friend, Aimee. One day, working late, or thinking about Tommy at her office after dark, a freak accident sends Jenna back to 1987. It's a few short months before Tommy will die and Jenna's job is apparently working as his assistant. But Tommy is not the guy she imagined. He's mean and rude and obnoxious. But he is still deliciously good-looking. When Tommy takes her into his confidence, she starts to see the real him beneath the image and finds herself more in love than ever. He suspects someone is trying to kill him-and she knows it won't be long before they succeed. Why is she here? Is she meant to save his life? But how can she without revealing the bizarre, unbelievable truth?

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I'm writing this review while listening to 80's pop on Pandora. How freaking inspirational and awesome is that..lol. Some things just didn't make sense in I Love the 80s but whatever is what I say. This book is just to good to give a damn. Can you tell that I love the 80s?

Jenna Jenkins is going through some tough times after her breakup with her fiance, but she still has dreamy Tommy Seer, even if he is dead. From the beginning I knew I was going to love Jenna. She still loves the 80's and everything it represents, down to her crush Tommy Seer. She always thought of him as her perfect man, too bad he died so young. When Jenna finds herself back in 1987 and close around no other than Tommy, she feels like she must be dreaming. When she realizes that this may not be a dream she sets out to make her life and Tommy's better by doing whatever she needs to do to prevent Tommy from crashing off a bridge. I love how Jenna realizes that Tommy isn't everything she thought he was. Of course, he would be something totally different than what she would see through her TV set. As she comes to see the real Tommy, she can't help but fall for him even more, even if he's a little rude. Tommy Seer is brilliant. Seriously, I love that we get who we think Tommy is from Jenna's head, but then see who the real Tommy is. Tommy is imperfect and tired of all the backstage crap. He's certainly not jaded by the fame but in fact disgusted by it all. The interactions between Jenna and Tommy aren't what you would think they would be in the beginning. Tommy is very cautious around Jenna especially as she acting like a total groupie, and he's so over that. But as they spend more time together she stops being a groupie and really starts to get to know him and he certainly sees that. I love the relationship they start. First it's a partnership, then a somewhat friendship then slowly takes a turn to something else. Perfectly done in my opinion.

Now for the best thing about I Love the 80s....the 80's. It is a very nostalgic read if you remember the 80's. The clothes, the hair and the electronics were all a trip down memory lane. I loved the added descriptions of the things around Jenna. When someone takes out a cell phone and Ms. Crane describes it, I laughed so hard because I remember them. They were so huge. When you read I Love the 80s you get the whole 80's vibe and most importantly, it's done right.

My one problem with I Love the 80s is the whole time travel aspect. We don't get a how. In both the beginning and ending there is no explanation of how it happens. I like to call it "the magic of words". If you try to find a explanation, you won't find it. But hey, it's a fun awesomely cool read that I really didn't give a damn. It didn't take anything away from this fun read. If lack of details bother you, then I think you could be bothered with the no explanation.

I recommend this to chick lit fans, 80's fans and anybody who has ever crushed on a celebrity and thought how awesome it would be to have a romantic relationship with them.

p.s. If I could go back to the 80's and try to convince my dream man that we belong together (side note: I'm currently listening to 'We Belong Together' by Pat Benatar :)) I would go back for Corey Feldman. Yes, I said it! Who would you go back for?

Apr 23, 2012

Allie lost everything the night her boyfriend, Trip, died in a horrible car accident-including her memory of the event. As their small town mourns his death, Allie is afraid to remember because doing so means delving into what she's kept hidden for so long: the horrible reality of their abusive relationship.

When the police reopen the investigation, it casts suspicion on Allie and her best friend, Blake, especially as their budding romance raises eyebrows around town. Allie knows she must tell the truth. Can she reach deep enough to remember that night so she can finally break free?

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Jennifer Shaw Wolf's debut novel Breaking Beautiful hits all the marks. I was immediately drawn into Allie life and the mystery of what happen the night her boyfriend Trip died.

The first thing that grabbed me was the mystery of what happen on the night that Trip died. Throughout the book we are kept guessing as to what happen, just getting small glimpses as Allie remembers some small detail. I thought it was done really well. There is enough going on besides the mystery that keep it interesting as we wait to find out what happened. Allie is dealing with the whispers and stares, as well as reliving the abuse from Trip. Helping her along is her past best friend Blake. As Allie and Blake spend more and more time together, she realizes how much she really cares for him. Breaking Beautiful has great pacing. The intensity level crept higher and higher as the story was unfolding, ending in a satisfying conclusion.

Breaking Beautiful has some really great characters. A lot of Allie's emotions are very believable. She goes through plenty in the book and though some decisions she made were a little aggravating, I think my age (pass my YA years) and experience contribute to the annoyances in her behavior. Blake is kind of hard to get to know in the beginning but by the end you know so much about who he is, not from Ms. Wolf telling us but from her showing us. Andrew, Allie's twin brother who has Cerebral Palsy and is in a wheel chair is also a big part of Breaking Beautiful. The relationship Allie and Andrew share is perfect. I love the moments between them.

Congratulations to Ms. Shaw on a great debut novel. Definitely recommended!

Apr 22, 2012

When Wendy Geller's body is found in Central Park after the night of a rager, newspaper headlines scream, "Death in the Park: Party Girl Found Strangled." But shy Rain, once Wendy's best friend,knows there was more to Wendy than just "party girl." As she struggles to separate the friend she knew from the tangle of gossip and headlines, Rain becomes determined to discover truth about the murder.

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Really late last night I decided to start The Girl in the Park, just a couple of chapters. Yeah, that didn't happen, I ended up reading the whole darn thing, luckily it was short read. I threw myself on the bed around 5 in the morning. HA! Sometimes it sucks being a fangirl of books.

The Girl in the Park is a YA mystery, a darn good mystery that left me guessing till close to the end. So, I thought the mystery was quite good. It was my favorite part of the book. I kept reading to find out who killed Wendy. The murder/case of Wendy reminded in some ways of the real murder of Jennifer Levin. While I was reading it I kept thinking of the "Preppy Murder Case". I saw an American Justice show about this case a while back and while reading this book I could see some similarities. A couple of times I thought I figured it out, but then Ms. Fredericks would take it somewhere else.

There are a couple of aspects I didn't enjoy in The Girl in the Park. For one, Ms. Fredericks lost me a couple of times in the beginning. Our main protagonist Rain finds out that Wendy didn't make it home last night, then she goes on with her planned day of visiting her grandma. During these couple of pages the writing is disjointed. One minute she is with her grandma, the next we are reading flashbacks of Rain and Wendy together. I had to keep stopping to reread to see where we leave Rain at her grandma's and jump into the past. It didn't last long, but for some reason my momentum never picked up. Nothing felt smooth for the rest of the book, like I couldn't recover. I guess maybe I kept thinking it was still going on and kept looking for it. I don't know how to explain it, so I will just say the beginning effed up the flow of the rest for me. My other complaint are the characters, I never felt connected to the what was happening. I was not invested in any characters. You know like when your friends are telling you a story about someone you don't know and you are mildly interested because it's a good story but since you don't know them, you are kinda like whatever. <--That analogy sucks but hopefully you get what i'm saying.

I won't be screaming off the rooftops to buy The Girl in the Park, but if you love a good mystery, you certainly won't be disappointed.

Apr 20, 2012

Lucy Jo Ellis, from a small town in Minnesota, moved to New York with the dream of becoming a famous designer, but so far, working in a dress shop cutting out patterns, she hasn't gotten very far. Wyatt Hayes is a Harvard-educated anthropologist from money, very old money, who just dumped his socialite girlfriend. Suddenly inspired while waiting for a taxi, he bets his friend that he can turn a girl, any girl, into a bona fide New York socialite, no matter how corn-fed she is. Lucy needs a job, so she agrees to the experiment. In a whirlwind of personal trainers, designer gowns, spa retreats, and elocution lessons, Lucy is transformed, and now she must decide which of the Lucy's is really her, and if Wyatt is simply a scientist or if there is more to his story.

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There really isn't anything original about The Overnight Socialite. Girl is a mess, rich boy rescues her, then fall in love. Very predictable read, yet it still was cute.

The Overnight Socialite is a good example of why I can't read chick lit back to back anymore. It's all been done! I still thought it was a okay fun read because of my love of the characters and the relationships. We are introduced to Lucy as she's getting ready to go to a fashion show that she believes is her ticket to a fashion design career. Instead she ends the night going right through the runway, literally. Very Bridget Jones of her, don't you think? We later meet the other players in The Overnight Socialite: Wyatt, Trip, Eloise, Fernanda and the bitch of all bitches, Cornelia. Though I think some of the players are cliche, I also thought they had personality, even if they weren't likable ones (cough; Cornelia;cough).

The Overnight Socialite delves into social classes of people and how they are so different. But more importantly, the ostracizing that goes on when you feel someone is not up to par with your social class. I was most intrigued my the villian Cornelia because she took social bullying to a whole another level. Seriously, I would rather hang out with struggling straight from the midwest peeps than the likes of the Cornelia's of the world. As for the romance in the Overnight Socialite, I really didn't like it. Chemistry is missing between Lucy and Wyatt. If the romance was better I think that I would have liked this better, regardless that chick lit is predictable I love me some smokin' hot chemistry between the MC and love interest and usually can ignore the lack of originality if the romance is gush worthy. Sadly, it wasn't in The Overnight Socialite. Even the other couples are lacking chemistry. The relationships that are wonderful are the friendships. The friendship between Trip and Wyatt is genuine. Lucy and Eloise also have a great relationship. The best moments in The Overnight Socialite are those between friends.

I can't really recommend this because I honestly think in the genre of chick lit there are better books out there. I will say that Lucy Jo is a great character you can cheer for and Wyatt is a great guy, just together they had no sizzle.

Karen Gravano is the daughter of Sammy "the Bull" Gravano, once one of the mafia's most feared hit men. With nineteen confessed murders, the former Gambino Crime Family underboss-and John Gotti's right-hand man-is the highest ranking gangster ever to turn States's evidence and testify against members of his high-profile crime family.

But to Karen, Sammy Gravano was a sometimes elusive but always loving father figure. He was ever-present at the head of the dinner table. He made a living running a construction firm and several nightclubs. He stayed out late, and sometimes didn't come home at all. He hosted "secret" meetings at their house, and had countless whispered conversations with "business associates." By the age of twelve, Karen knew he was a gangster. And as she grew up, while her peers worried about clothes and schoolwork, she was coming face to face with crime and murder. Gravano was nineteen years old when her father turned his back on the mob and cooperated with the Feds. The fabric of her family was ripped apart, and they were instantly rejected by the communities they grew up in.

This is the story of a daughter's struggle to reconcile the image of her living father with that of a murdering Mafioso, and how, in healing the rift between the two, she was able to forge a new life.

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I never miss an episode of Mob Wives..never. I've always been fascinated with the mob, watching the movies and reading the books. Of course I had to read Mob Daughter!

I found some parts very interesting, but mostly I finished this book thinking this Karen Gravano is seriously on a head trip. She sure does a lot of boasting about it. Yeah, she doesn't come outright and say "my dad was a bad ass, and we are super cool" because well she would come off as a immature and childish, but it's exactly what she's implying. What's bad ass about the Mafia? Karen Gravano gives us a look into what life was like for her being the daughter of a gangster. I don't think that she held back, but I do think that she tried to rationalize things and the rationalizing was ridiculous. If someone was killed, well they were killed because they betrayed the code. As for the writing, it wasn't bad. Her life story flowed easily, there was no going back and forth randomly. Very easy to follow.

If you are a fan of Mob Wives then I would recommend this just because you get a better idea of who Karen Gravano is.

Apr 10, 2012

Seventeen year old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with the dangerous gift-and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae's most important assignment takes her straight into the high country of Brittany-where she finds herself woefully under prepared-not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death's vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

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I was intrigued with Grave Mercy after reading the synopsis, then I started reading positive review after positive review so my expectations were high going into it. I'm pretty sure that going in with those expectations hindered my overall experience reading Grave Mercy.

I liked Grave Mercy, but I certainly didn't love it. I found that it dragged a bit for me. I found all the politics boring and really kept reading because of the main protagonist Ismae. Ismae is a fierce force to be reckoned with and I love that. My all time favorite characters are strong kick ass females. Grave Mercy definitely has that. Ismae is trained to serve St. Mortain, the god of Death and she does it well. But when she starts falling for Duval, the man she is suppose to be keeping an eye out for and possibly kill, the book gets interesting. My favorite parts of Grave Mercy were that pertaining to her loyalty to the convent and St. Mortain and her growing love for Duval and how those two things were conflicting with each other. I liked that the love between Ismae and Duval grew naturally and was warranted, I can see why they fell for each other.

For me the politics of Grave Mercy dragged on and I got bored. The mystery of who was causing all the conflict for the Duchess wasn't as interesting as I was hoping. There were a lot of meetings to discuss what was going on and again I found that I wanted to skim those parts, but I didn't. Grave Mercy is a long book with over 500 pages, I hung on and in the end I'm not sure the good outweighed the bad. The bulk of the book was about who was committing treason and the politics and I wanted more Duval and Ismae moments...moments that did not have to do with the state of the High Court.

I may be in the minority with Grave Mercy, but it really was just ok. Did anyone else find it boring in some parts? I do think you have to be a fan of historical fiction to really like this. I'm just ehh about the genre, so that may be why I didn't enjoy it so much. I will not be continuing the series.

Apr 9, 2012

When U.S. Marine Logan Thibault finds a photograph of a smiling young women half-buried in the dirt during his third tour of duty in Iraq, his first instinct is to toss it aside. Instead, he brings it back to the base for someone to claim, but when no one does, he finds himself always carrying the photo in his pocket. Soon Thibault experiences a sudden streak of luck-winning poker games and even surviving deadly combat that kills two of his closest buddies. Only his best friend, Victor, seems to have an explanation for his good; the photograph-his lucky charm.

Back home in Colorado, Thibault can't seem to get the photo-and the woman in it-out of his mind. Believing that she somehow holds the key to his destiny, he sets out on a journey across the country to find her, never expecting the strong but vulnerable woman he encounters in Hampton, North Carolina-Elizabeth, a divorced mother with a young son-to be the girl he's been waiting for his whole life to meet. Caught off guard by the attraction he feels, Thibault keeps the story of the photo, and his luck, a secret. As he and Elizabeth embark upon a passionate and all-consuming love affair, the secret he is keeping will soon threaten to tear them apart-destroying not only their love, but also their lives.

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The movie adaption of The Lucky One starring Zac Efron as Logan Thibault will be coming out this month and I wanted to read this before I watch the movie. For me, I usually enjoy Nicholas Sparks movies better than the books. I find that I fall in the middle with Nicholas Sparks books. I find that I'm not terribly impressed with his romances, but they do entertain me...a little.

Likes:

Logan Thibault Character- I enjoyed Thibault. Being in his head and knowing his thoughts, I truly can say he is a perfect "the one". Crush-worthy character.

Iraq War flashbacks- I thought these parts of the book were the most interesting. Made the character of Logan much more real.

Zeus, Logan's Dog- Seriously, my favorite dog in a book, though I haven't read many. Zeus plays a big part in this book.

The picture- That damn picture! I hate Elizabeth's reaction when it "all" comes out.

Annoyances- There were quite a bit of small things that annoyed me. Elizabeth never freaking ate. And when she did it was half a toast and she was satisfied. Whatever! Also, the character Clayton. Everything he did was annoying.

I'm really looking forward to the movie. I usually like the movie adaptions of his books. I'm glad I did read it before I watched the movie and it was enjoyable so it was worth the read. I do recommend that you borrow this from your local library instead of spending your money.

Apr 5, 2012

At the beginning of his senior year, Ben Wolf discovers he has an aggressive form of leukemia. Ben decides to tell no one; he wants his last year of school to be normal. Only, not telling the truth is the same as lying, and it takes Ben almost a year to figure that out. And what a year it is.

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I don't know why I thought that Deadline would be humorous considering it is a story about death. It isn't. Most of it was great, awesome, it just had one tiny little flaw.

First let me praise this book. I seriously really love this book. Deadline is about the journey of Ben Wolf's last year alive. He has leukemia, a aggressive form, that is going to kill him with or without treatment. All it would do is maybe prolong his life a little. The Fault in Our Stars is still very much in my thoughts, I read it last month so I was a little worry that the topic was too similar for me to give Deadline a real fair read. Would I compare it too much, I wondered? It's different and the same. Ben's approach is to live his life to the fullest and try to experience as much as he can. He becomes brave where he was afraid, he becomes confident where he was unsure. I love the character of Ben, so much. I understood his reasoning behind his actions, though I didn't agree and as he is talking to Hey-Soos in his dreams he is growing spiritually, as well as seeing things so much more clearly (some great moments). Ben is opening his eyes to the way of the world, and we are right along for the ride. We love when he triumphs, we cheer him on when he asking his crush out. He's a protagonist I dare you not to like. Deadline is a much more serious book than I imagined I was getting when I bought it. It was depressing yet had it's moments when your smile couldn't get any bigger. I think Chris Crutcher has a way of bringing so many different angles to story. I am a now a fan.

My only problem with Deadline is a secret that comes to light. It seems that though Ben is keeping a huge secret to himself, two people in his life decide to reveal theirs to him. One of those secrets I don't know what purpose it had in Deadline. I wonder why Mr. Crutcher put it in there? Am I missing something? There seem to be no reason for it, it didn't change the story, it didn't do anything storywise, so why put it in. If you have read Deadline and can give me a understanding of it's purpose that would be great. Oh, and it's secret number one told to him that I don't understand.

Despite the one small thing I didn't understand, I absolutely love Deadline. I thought it was a thought provoking novel with an awesome main character. Yes, I cried. I love Ben Wolf.

I've decided to open up a Youtube channel. I had already started and had loaded up five videos, but they got deleted in a drunken state. My plan is for me to choose 5 books in the beginning of every month and make a TBR video, and then have reviews on those books. I will also be doing book hauls, book discussion videos and tags. At the end of the month I will make a wrap up video. I am also going to start doing the same thing here at Coffee, Books and Laundry. Some months I will have a theme month. If I finish all five books chosen for that month ( and I know I will) I can then pick up whatever. I did this for March on my Youtube channel and it worked out great for me. My April TBR post will be up tomorrow.